First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently MP3 CD – Abridged, August 23, 2016

Gives great insight on how good/great management is done. Raises awareness how idiosyncrasies of employees matters. As based on the analysis of 1,5 mln. of hours of interviews with 80 k managers it's hardly can be bad right? For those who cannot afford a week or so to bring the book the the knees I will list below some of the ideas I remember or had jotted down.1. People don’t quit their companies, they quit their bosses;2. Define the right outcomes and then let each person find his own route toward those outcomes;3. The most efficient route that nature has found from point A to point B is rarely a straight line. It is always the path of least resistance;4. All roles demand some accuracy & safety, standardized steps are needed (Baring Bank case);5. Languages, symbols, conventions, scales-these are the DNA of civilization-without the ability to accept standards we could have never developed such a complex society;6. The companies that define the new standards will gain huge advantage over latecomers;7. Customers’ levels of expectationsa. Accuracyb. Availabilityc. Partnership;d. Advice/educate8. Customer is ultimate judge of value;9. Use practical ways to see world through your customers eyes;10. At Disney they think vibrant companies should have 5 year plans but willing to change it every year - that’s tough for the intermediaries like managers;11. When I draw my playbook I always go from the players to the plays-head coach of Minnesota Vikings;12. Focus on each persons strengths and manage around his weaknesses. Don’t try to fix the weaknesses… help each person to become more of who he already is;13. One of the sings of the great manager is the ability to describe in detail the unique talent of each of his people – what drives each one, how each one thinks, how each build relationships;14. Know the difference between the skills and knowledge and weaknesses;15. The golden rule is broken by the great managers every day-they don’t treat people the way they would lie to be treated-people don’t breath same psychological oxygen;16. Time you spent with your best employee (not the weakest) is your most productive time;17. No news is never good news;18. From the perspective of great managers averaging is irrelevant to excellence-top performers have more potential for growth;19. Success is achieved through a never-ending pursuit of improvement-personally, professionally financially and spiritually;20. Each of us is a couple of talent cards short of a full deck;21. Partnerships are not archetype, each partnership in fact is anomaly;22. If you find yourself spending most of your time managing weakness of particular employee, than know that you’ve made a casting error;23. When employee requires growth-promotion-help each person find roles that ask him to do more and more of what he is naturally wired to do;24. Most employees are promoted to the level of their incompetence;25. Great managers envision company where there are multiple routes towards respect and prestige;26. Broadbanding – for each role you define a pay in broad bands or ranges with the top end of the lower level role overlapping the bottom end of the role above-companies like Merill Lynch & Disney have well endured the practice;27. During the Gallup’s interviews with great managers they found a consistent willingness to hire employees who the manager knew, might soon earn significantly more than they did;28. Create heroes in every role;29. Great managers make sure to have 4 hours a year with an employee to discuss their career path;30. When using trial periods for employees you must be very clear about the details;31. What level of performance is unacceptable? Any level that hovers around average with no trend upward;32. In mind of great managers to care means to set the person up for success;33. G.M. on “tough love”- each of best men on my two weddings was someone I fired;34. G.M. : but I know my people some times better then they know themselves;35. The four keys to great management are:a. Select for talent;b. Define the right outcomesc. Focus on strengths;d. Find the right fit;36. When casting for talent ask open-ended questions;37. Past behavior is a good predictor of future behavior. Therefore questions like “tell me about a time when you…” can serve you well;38. Pitfall is evaluating articulation and memory of interviewed;39. Rapid learning is an important clue to persons talent. Ask candidate what kind of roles she has been able to learn quickly. Ask her what activities come easily to her now..40. Great managers find times for performance management routines-4 common characteristics for it:a. Routine is simple;b. Routine forces frequent interaction between manager and employee;c. Routine is focused on the futured. Makes employee to keep track of his own performance41. In the world according to great managers the employee is the star. The manager is the agent.42. When you enter your place of work, you never leave it at zero. You either make it a little better or a little worse.43. Managers trump companies;44. Human power lies in its idiosyncrasy;45. Real profit increase drives stock increase-sustainable growth drives real profit increase-loyal customers drive customer growth-engaged employees drive customer loyalty-the right people in the right roles wit the right managers drive employee engagement;46. Great managers are not looking for people who are easy to manage;Don't judge me for posting this tonight I'm glory glory guy not forza or vamps :) :UCLfinal:

"This book, based on twenty years empirical data, you have to love that. After first reading this book in 2006, my reaction was "MAN! This is a validation of what my mentors showed me". I have had some GREAT mentors during my career, both in the military and later, as a civilian. They taught me how to see things outside of conventional wisdom (not merely ignore that wisdom). If I may now offer further review: The following will comprise of my impressions of the Conventional vs. Revolutionary Key Approaches, offered on pages 66 and 67 offered in FIRST BREAK ALL THE RULES (1999) by M. Buckingham and C. Coffman.Conventional Key: "Select a person based on his experience, intelligence, and determination". There is nothing wrong with this statement in of itself. Let's say that there is are two candidates, one external, and one internal for one Engineering Change Order Coordinator position and the enterprise software system being used is Oracle. The external candidate does not have experience with the specified software, however has written thousands of ECOs, as well as cause and effect reports for their department. The other candidate has experience with exact software, however only minimal similar report writing. If the manager chooses the internal candidate due to the software experience, it may work fine in the long run. It can prove to be a better selection tool for the manager to use the Revolutionary Key: "When selecting someone, they select for talent, not simply experience, intelligence, and determination". In this case, the external candidate has a proven talent for working with personnel from multiple departments, in order to complete tasks that come with ECO writing. This individual will may likely have skill sets can perhaps cross over with minimal system training.Conventional Key: "Set expectations by defining the right steps". Creating flowcharts to show the steps needed to complete a set of tasks is a good thing. Using the Revolutionary Key: "When setting expectations, they define the right outcomes, not the right steps", can prove better. Perhaps you still use Visio, but instead you reverse engineer the processes to find your prerequisites. Work the process backward, from your desired outcome, back to the start.Conventional Key: "Motivate the person by helping him identify and overcome weaknesses". This less politically correct method of evaluating an employee, still fits well for some of the workers that reported to me. Their request was for me to "Tell me what I am doing wrong, so I can fix it." Revolutionary Key: "When motivating someone, they focus on strengths not weaknesses". For the most part, this approach has been the norm for myself, and the people that worked for me. The reviews that I wrote were geared more towards professional development in fact. I will not manufacture a weakness in someone, when one is not present! With influence from a previous manager, I began to have group study with the shop, install, and service foremen. Instead of having them read a book, we each studied a chapter a week. Each week, a different person would be assigned the chapter, and would write, and hand out a worksheet with a set of questions a couple days before we met, and then the team would discuss the assignment.Conventional Key: "Develop the person by helping them learn and get promoted. Career path by default? There is a certain quaintness to the "paid your dues"Âpath. So, if the worker is one of the best, AND shows leadership potential, I would still recommend this process Revolutionary Key: When developing someone, they help him find the right fit not simply the next rung on the ladder. Truly a key point. Even if it is the "paid your dues path, finding there right fit, and then developing that individual to be able to handle the new level of responsibility.Talent: "A recurring pattern of thought, feeling, or behavior that can be productively applied." Three recurring patterns that I feel a supervisor should have, are Ethics, Responsibility, And Command. A fairly cut and dry selection for me, as my most important mentors in the military and in business, all have had these talentsFrom the Striving Talents Ethics: A clear understanding of right and wrong, which guides your actions. Perhaps it is not telling your subordinate to lie to a supplier, or customer. Or maybe it is not being willing to have a good-old-boy network where you have your favorite workers stay in your office for extended meetings after lunch or smoke breaks with you, while the other workers are breaking knuckles turning wrenches. It is neither fair to the company, which expects work to be done during the periods that payroll is expected to compensate, nor those busting knuckles.Thank you for this book, Mr. Buckingham and Mr. Coffman."